


Couldn't See It Coming

by ObsidianRomance



Series: Couldn't See It Coming 'Verse [1]
Category: Supernatural RPF
Genre: M/M, Mpreg
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-02-24
Updated: 2013-02-24
Packaged: 2017-12-03 11:43:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 9,681
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/697889
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ObsidianRomance/pseuds/ObsidianRomance
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>This was written for the mpregwinchester Autumn comment meme an 2people2's prompt - "Jensen is about 6-7 months pregnant and he gets into a car accident; the baby is fine but Jensen gets a little banged up so he needs to stay at the hospital for a little while so he can heal. So because the hospital is really full the hospital staff has him share a room with Jared who is there because he donated a kidney. I just want them to bond in the hospital room and have them celebrate Thanksgiving together while in the room. I also want there to be a lot of Jensen holding his belly and description of the baby kicking."</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Pairing: None right now (eventual J2)  
> Warnings: cursing, hurt!Jensen, mpreg!Jensen

Jensen tried to open his eyes and he couldn’t remember it ever being so difficult.  He tried again, lids heavy and unresponsive.  His head was pounding and he wondered if he was better off keeping his eyes shut to begin with.

He shifted slightly and a jolt of pain ran through his body, making his eyelids instantly responsive as they flew open.

The pain blurred his vision and everything was too blindingly white.  Noises came back into existence and his ears buzzed with the flurry of activity circling around him.

Gasping, Jensen’s eyes went wide and he reflexively tried to bolt upright, only he couldn’t.  He was restrained to – _something_ – and he could barely move his head due to a restraint on his neck.

“Mr. Ackles?”

A form loomed over Jensen, crowding into his vision.  He tried to get words out but they died on his tongue as pain blossomed across his forehead and down his body.

“Mr. Ackles?  Can you hear me?  I’m Ryan, an EMT.  You’ve been in a car accident.  Do you understand me?”

Jensen’s head was spinning.  He realized he must be on a stretcher but it was hard to distinguish up from down.  The EMT was shining something in his pupils and he gasped. 

He didn’t remember being in a car, let alone being in a car accident.

Ryan was speaking too loudly in his ear again.  “We are going to take care of you, going to get you to the hospital.  Just try not to move.”

Again, Jensen tried to speak but he choked on a pain filled gasp.  A feeling in his middle set off warning sirens in his head and his belly contracted, making his eyes flutter back in shock.

“Jensen?  Can you hear me?”  Ryan was leaning over Jensen again, looking for some type of response.

Heart rate speeding up, Jensen put his meager understandings together.  Pain rippled through him again, but this time it wasn’t from his head.  Voice cracking, it took Jensen two tries to get his word out.  “Baby…”

“Baby?”  The EMT screwed his face up in confusion momentarily before his eyes widened in realization.  “Baby, your baby?” 

Curling his lip up in discomfort, Jensen squeezed his eyes shut and gave the biggest nod he was capable of.

Ryan ghosted his eyes over the prominent swell in Jensen’s middle.  “How far along are you?”  Hands moving in routine exploration, Ryan worked them over Jensen’s pregnant form, sucking in a gasp when he noticed a splotch of blood between his legs that hadn’t been there before.  “Shit.”

The EMT barked out an order but Jensen couldn’t catch it.  His vision was fading out again.  He felt hot as a sticky queasiness crept in, but the pain washed over him, drowning him in it until he slipped into unconsciousness once more.

**************

The third time Jensen tried to open his eyes that – _day?_ – was just as difficult as the prior time.  He finally managed to blink them open and come face to face with the sterile whiteness of his surroundings.

After being enclosed in darkness for so long, he had to flutter his eyelids several time before his pupils adjusted to the brightness.  He was far enough into the realm of the living to realize that he was in some time of medical facility.  A hospital…he could have sworn he remembered someone telling him he was going to a hospital.

Everything in his body hurt and his head was pounding but he pushed himself up anyway, immediately regretting it when his tight muscles cramped up.

Heart rate spiking from the pain and the growing feeling of uneasiness from realizing he was attached to multiple sensors and monitors, an alert near his bed send went off, sending a shrill beeping sound through the room.

It seemed like things happened instantaneously or maybe that Jensen was just losing grip on actual time passage, but there was a nurse and doctor silencing the alarm and fiddling with the other machines and read outs before he could even process why he was in a hospital with a beeping machine and a million machines blipping around him.  The more he realized he was confined to the bed the more his heart raced and he was so focused on that fact that when he heard a voice beside him he took in a loud shuddering breath.

“Mr. Ackles, you need to relax.  You’re safe.” A man in a pristine white lab coat put a hand on Jensen’s arm to ground him.  “You’ve been in a nasty car accident and have suffered a few complications.  I’ll explain everything to you but I need you to calm down first.”

“I…how…what?”  Chest rising and falling with his rapid breathing, Jensen tried to put blurry fragments of recollection in some type of order.  His lungs were making quick panting noise and his eyes darted around the room.

“I’ll explain.  Just keep taking deep slow breaths in through your nose and out through your mouth.”  The doctor copied what he instructed Jensen to do and was soon breathing alongside the man.  “Very good, just like that.”  He nodded in encouragement and waited in silence while Jensen tried to return to normalcy.

Starting to feel a bit silly, Jensen furrowed his brow but kept breathing until he noticed his heart rate displayed on the monitor was starting to go down.  His body still ached but he fought through the discomfort to bring both hands to the swell in his middle.  With both hand pressed flat against the distension, he shot concerned eyes at the doctor.  “My baby…”

“Right now your baby is okay, but if you want to keep it that way then I need you to relax and take it easy.  Can you do that for me?” 

“Yeah…yeah…I can do that.”  Jensen nodded and rubbed his hands over his stomach, searching for a sign of the life that was inside.

“Okay, good.”  The doctor paused to give Jensen a moment to focus on him.  “I’m Dr. Rayson, and I’ve been one of the primary doctors treating you.”

“One of?  How many people have been working on me?  How long have I been here?”  Jensen caught his anxiety level rising again and forced it back down with several calming breaths.

“A few hours.  You were unconscious for most of it, you drifted in and out of lucidity several times but I doubt you remember it.  Listen, Mr. Ackles, I don’t want to sugar coat what is going on here, you were in a serious car accident. But you are in a good place and we are going to take care of you.”

“Car accident?”  Jensen screwed his face up in a concentrated effort.  “Oh god…”  Thinking hard about it, Jensen recalled hearing the sound of squelching metal before his world went black.  “I was on the way home from work…”  His thought tapered off and he felt a tightness in his middle.  Instinctively, his hands set to rubbing his baby belly, sweeping low on the underside of the bump to help support it.

“Yes.  The ambulance brought you in late in the afternoon.  Someone T-boned your car.  The cops say neither motorists was to blame, there was a faulty traffic light.  Neither of you even saw it coming.  You were hit pretty hard and suffered some bruising, what looks like some bruised ribs too, but that isn’t what I am worried about.  We think you’ve had a concussion but haven’t been able to keep you conscious long enough to assess anything.  We’re limited in our treatments due to your pregnancy, which is also why we can’t give you anything for the pain.”

Jensen nodded, taking time to process the heavy facts.  “That’s okay…as long as the baby is alright.”

Dr. Rayson pursed his lips and his calm expression went serious.  “You went into preterm labor before they could even load you into the ambulance.”  When Jensen jerked forward in concern, the doctor put up a hand to hold him back.  “We stopped your labor with a Magnesium Sulfate treatment.  But you need to relax before you stress yourself out and land yourself in labor again.”

“Right…”  Jensen curled his fingers more securely around his middle.

“We are monitoring the baby, that is what this,” he pointed towards a monitor, “machine is doing.  It is keeping track of the fetal heartbeat.  Right now it is nice and strong but I ordered an ultrasound just to see what we are dealing with.”

“Okay…”  Transfixed on the baby’s heart monitor, Jensen nodded dumbly.

“I also want to warn you that you that there was some bleeding we are concerned about but it seems to have slowed down since we stopped your labor.  I don’t want to you immediately be concerned if you notice bloody discharge, but I do want you to alert a nurse immediately.”

“But the baby is still okay, right?  I mean…blood…blood isn’t good.  What does that mean?”

“It means that you aren’t going anywhere for a while.  We want to monitor you for your injuries and keep you on bed rest to prevent premature delivery and further bleeding.  I know it sound scary Mr. Ackles, and it is…”

“Jensen.  Please call me Jensen.”  Jensen shuddered at the thought of anything being wrong with his baby.  He pressed down gently on his stomach wishing his unborn child would reassure him on its own.

“Okay, Jensen then.”  Dr. Rayson put his hand on his patients shoulder.  “We are going to take good care of you.  But I need you to keep up your end of the bargain too.  You need to relax, stay calm, and try to stay awake for a little while.  I’ll have more people in here to run some tests and perform the ultrasound I mentioned earlier.  We aren’t having a baby today and hopefully not for the next 3 months or so.”  He smiled.  “I know it is a lot to ask, but just try to relax.”

Jensen nodded.  He knew he should probably be asking a lot more questions but his brain was still foggy and it hurt to try focusing.

“Do you want us to call anyone for you?  A partner or family member?”  Dr. Rayson opened his arms in a gesture to go along with his words.  “Anyone?”

Quick and to the point, Jensen shook his head.  “No.  Thank you.”

Face falling as if saddened by his patient’s response, the doctor sighed.  “Well, okay then.  But if you change your mind, or you need anything, page someone.”  He indicated a call button on the side of Jensen’s bed.  “Someone will be in here eventually to fill out some insurance forms but that can wait until we have everything regulated.”  He tipped his head in an exit gesture and made his way back towards the doorway. 

“Dr. Rayson?”  Jensen brought a hand to his forehead, fingers barely touching it. 

“Hmm?”

“What happened to the other person?  The person who hit me?” 

“They were brought to a different hospital.  I heard he will pull through but I’m not sure of much else.”  Nodding again, “Just try to rest for now.  I check in on your later before my shift is up.”

Jensen nodded his head in understanding and fell back against the pillows.

His weekend was not supposed to start like this.

He was supposed to be heading out of town to spend a few days before Thanksgiving with his best, and possibly only friend he had left.  After his nasty break up with Peter, lines had been drawn; shot fired and when the smoke cleared Jensen was the undeniable loser.  The friends he thought were “their” friends turned out to really be “Peter’s friends.”  It left him with a bunch of people pretending to still care about him, masquerading as acquaintances who still said “hi” in such a cold way Jensen couldn’t believe he actually thought they cared about him.

Thank god for Evelyn; the one people whose friendship was through and through.  He was supposed to be spending the holiday with her but now she was 200 miles away, in a town he felt kicked him out rather than that he left by choice, and he was stuck in a hospital bed.

He should probably call her.  Let her know he probably wasn’t going to make dinner on Thanksgiving, let alone tonight.

But calling meant talking, and talking meant feeling, and he was plumb out of “feelings” right now.  He was tired and sore and scared as hell and he didn’t need Evelyn’s worried shrieking or sympathetic pity to make him feel like an even worse father than he did right now.

Although he wasn’t sure he could feel any worse.

He was supposed to have distanced himself from Peter, from everyone, because it was a better world to bring his baby up in.  He was _supposed_ to be protecting his child.

He _wasn’t_ supposed to get in almost fatal car accidents and mess up everything.  It didn’t matter if it wasn’t his fault.  He’d been hearing Peter bitch about how much everything, even the unplanned pregnancy, had been his fault that sometimes Jensen just found it easier to classify everything as his fault.

Sighing, he rubbed a hand to his eyes and through the crook of his elbow over his eyelids to blacken out the light that still found a way to creep in from behind his eyelids.  Sighing again, he focused on breathing calmly and forcing any thought of Peter out of his brain.

“Aren’t you supposed to be trying to stay awake?”

The voice cut through Jensen’s attempt at fading away and he shot his eyes open.  Once he landed on their source, he couldn’t understand how he hadn’t noticed the other man sharing the room with him earlier.  He was impressive; Jensen figured he must be taller than his own 6’1’’.  The man was sitting up in bed looking a hell of a lot more lively than Jensen was and he was smiling this unnervingly warm smile across the room.  Suddenly embarrassed, he flushed and smoothed down his hair.

“I’m sorry.  I didn’t mean to startle you.” 

“You didn’t startle me.”  Jensen huffed and tried to look unfazed but did a weak job of it.

“Well, then I am sorry for _not_ startling you.”  The man smirked and smiled even bigger.  “I heard the doctor tell you to try and stay awake for a while, and it looked like you were doing pretty poorly on that account.  I just…well, I guess I just didn’t want anything to happen to you.”

It was strange having a conversation from across the room with someone he barely knew.  Jensen didn’t even want to think right now, let alone use his energy to try and focus on a conversation.  He crossed his arms and snorted.  “It’s really none of your business.”

“Yeah, yeah, I know that.  But look at the size of this room?  It is hard to _not_ make everything my business.”  Smile still in place, the man made an eye sweep of the small room they shared.  “I am sorry if I offended you, I was just…you know…like I said, worried.”

Something in his roommate’s voice made Jensen soften.  He let his arms fall to his sides and sighed.  The level of general concern the stranger had for him was more than almost everyone he knew felt for him in the last few months.  It made something tingle in his gut and his mouth twitch into the faintest smile.  “No…It’s okay.  It’s just been a long day.”  Blushing again, Jensen raked a nervous hand though his short hair.  “Thanks, I guess.  I mean, for making sure I stay awake.”

The man shrugged.  “It’s not like I have anywhere else to be.”  He laughed and scratched at the back of his neck.  “I’m Jared by the way.”

“I’m – I’m Jensen.”

“Nice to meet you Jensen.”  Jared shifted on the bed and let out an unexpected hiss of discomfort.

“You okay?”  Jensen’s eyebrows popped up in what he realized was a concerned curiosity.  He stared at Jared, knowing he just met him but that had never stopped him from worrying about others.  He was empathetic.  It’s why he worked in training therapy dogs.

“Fine.  I just moved a little too quickly.  It’s hard to remember you have stitches sometimes when you are used to all kinds of pain medication.”  Jared forced a smile on his face but Jensen could tell he was still uncomfortable.

“I wish I could have some pain meds right about now.”  Jensen thumped his head back against the pillow and exhaled out his nose.  He brought both hands to cover the reason why he couldn’t have any of said desired pain relief and rubbed absently.

The two sat in silence for a moment before curiosity got the best of Jensen.  “So, I’m assuming you already know why I’m in here.”  Jensen shrugged at Jared and made an exaggerated eye sweep of the room like Jared had done earlier.  “Small room and everything.”  When Jared gave a guilty smile, Jensen was actually glad he wouldn’t have to repeat the whole story, that he wouldn’t have to even dwell on the chance that something could have happened to his baby.  “Why are you in here?”

For a brief moment, Jared looked shocked that someone could be as forward as him but that emotion quickly gave way to delight in building the communication between the two of them.  “I gave my sister a kidney.”

Jensen almost went cross-eyed.  The way Jared said those words was almost like he said “I went for a walk”, like it was the most natural action on earth.  “You what?”

“I gave my sister a kidney.  I have – had – two of them.  She went into kidney failure and it’s been an uphill battle but…she’s my sister.  I’d give her anything.  Besides, I have a spare.”  Jared laughed at Jensen’s wide eyed blinking.

“Wow.”  Jensen bit his lip, floored by Jared selfless act and rationalization.  “Jared, that’s…that’s amazing.  How is she doing?”

“A little worse than me, but the kidney took – so far – and the doctors think she will make a full recovery.”  Jared smiled at the thought.  “It’s a little weird, you know?  This whole saving someone life thing.”

“I’ll bet.”  Jensen’s hands hadn’t stopped cradling his middle but he was suddenly entranced in Jared’s words.  “But, I mean it.  That’s amazing.  You must be her hero.”

Smiling at that thought, Jared puffed up a little with pride.  “It wasn’t even a question.  I mean, come on, what sibling wouldn’t do the same?”

The words hit Jensen harder than he could have anticipated.  Eyes going dark and avoiding his Jared’s cheerful ones, he looked over to the corner of the room.  His voice fell into a whisper. “Mine wouldn’t.”  He met Jared’s eyes and from the look on the man’s face he realized the absolute truth in his words had gotten across to his new acquaintance.  It used to make him sad that his family had cut ties with him years ago, but now it was just part of his life, same old same old.

“Aww, man, I’m sorry.  I didn’t mean to bring up bad shi-stuff.”  Jared’s frown deepened and he cocked his head to the side.  “I seem to have a habit of putting my foot in my mouth on most occasions.”

“Nah, you didn’t do anything wrong.  You’re lucky to have a family you care about, who I am assuming cares about you as well.”  Jensen shrugged and wiped at his eyes for a moment.  “My shit is not your fault.  Besides, I’m kind of working on my own family anyway and I care about that infinitely more.”  Jensen punctuated his statement with a gesture towards his belly.

Glad for the change of subject, Jared perked up.  “Oh, right! You’re having a baby.  That’s awesome.  I am glad everything is okay with that by the way.”

“Thanks.”

“I bet you and your partner have a lot to be thankful for right now, especially with Thanksgiving right around the corner.”  Jared stopped dead in his tracks when he saw the face Jensen gave him.  “There I go again.  Foot.  In.  Mouth.”  He paused to give an apologetic shrug.  “You don’t have a partner, do you?”

“Nope.”

“ _Fantastic._ ”  Jared’s words dripped with sarcasm before he smacked himself in the forehead.  “I’m sorry.  I’ll just shut up now and stop trying to make you feel worse about yourself.”

Jensen was tempted to take the offer, having long tired of thinking about the shitty situation his family and Peter left him in.  But the dejected, hurt-puppy look Jared was throwing him was doing weird things to his brain and he suddenly felt like he should apologize.  “No, it’s okay Jared.  I kinda…I kinda like talking to you.  It’s keeping me awake.   And, like I said before, you didn’t know any better.  But you don’t have to be sorry about the ‘no partner’ thing.  I’m thankful to be done with that good for nothing self centered arrogant…”  Jensen’s voice grew angrier as he rattled off insult after insult.

“Tell us how you really feel.”

Blushing suddenly about being so candid with someone he just met, Jensen bit his tongue.  “I guess you get the point.”

Nodding in understanding, Jared’s voice was soft.  “Yeah.  I’ve been there before.”

Their conversation was cut off when a middle aged nurse welding an ultrasound cart cut through the room and landed herself between the two men’s line of vision.  She looked tired but her smile didn’t show an ounce of that.  Instead, she beamed a grin in her patient’s direction.

“Hi Mr. Ackles.  I’m Manda.  I’m here to perform the ultrasound Dr. Rayson ordered.  I don’t want you to be alarmed, we think everything is fine, but one can never be too careful, right?”  She drew a privacy curtain around Jensen’s part of the room before readying her cart.

Jensen watched her work and fidgeted with the edge of the bed sheets.  “I’m still nervous.”

“I know sweetheart.  I’d be nervous too after the wreck you got thrown into.  But we’re going to take good care of both of you.”  Manda’s voice was calm and maternal; her mood was almost infections and Jensen felt himself relax under her care.  “Ready?”

“I guess so.”

Manda smiled again and helped push the bed sheets to the side and expose Jensen’s stomach.  In a matter of seconds she had his stomach coated in a smear of gel and was rolling the transducer around in search of the baby.

Jensen subconsciously squeezed his eyes shut at the first touch of the transducer again his distended middle.  Once he realized the action, he kept them closed.  He liked living in denial at the current moment and wasn’t ready to face the nurse should she have anything but positive news.

“Sweetie, you can open your eyes.”  Manda gave Jensen’s should a delicate touch.  “It’s alright.”

Jensen cracked one eye open, trying to focus on the ultrasound screen through the narrow glare.  It was hard to make heads or tails of anything but he still held back from opening both eyes.

“Your baby is fine.  Come on now, open your eyes and take a look for yourself.” The nurse gave a soft chuckle and locked eyes with Jensen before giving a head nod gesture for him to look at the screen.

Jensen blinked both eyes open and focused on the screen.  He had stared at his own ultrasound printouts enough to realize what he was looking at.  “Everything is okay?”  On the screen he watched the baby yawn, making him let out a relieved puff of air.

“Baby looks good.”  She moved the transducer around, pausing every now and then to study or measure something.

“But I haven’t felt a kick or anything since the car crash.”  In a complete turnaround from minutes earlier, Jensen was transfixed on the screen.  His ears twitched at a sudden burst of voices from Jared’s side of the room and the shuffle of chairs being moved but he was too transfixed to reflect on it more.  Instead, he watched the baby’s lips purse and unpurse.

“Hmm…”  Manda made a note on his chart.  “We’ll keep an eye on that.  But the baby looks good.  You’ve been through a lot of stress and the baby is feeling it too.  Let’s give you a little time to calm down and see where that brings us.  Okay?”  She smiled and turned back to the screen.  “Do you know what you are having?”

“No I…I didn’t want to know.”  Jensen bit his lip and watched the pulse of his baby’s heart materialize on the screen.  “But…I…”  He pursed his lips together and turned towards Manda.  “You can tell?”

“Let’s just say your baby isn’t very good at keeping secrets.” 

“Can you…I…I wanna know.”

“Sure?” 

Jensen nodded his head with more enthusiasm than he expected.  “After almost losing the chance of finding out?  Yeah, I wanna know.  I’m sure.”

“Looks like you are having a little girl.”  Manda smiled.

“Girl?  Yeah?”  The weight of the day’s events couldn’t stop the gigantic smile from spreading across Jensen’s face.  “I thought it was a girl….I mean, I would have been happy with either but…” he blinked away moister he didn’t notice collecting in the corners of his eyes “…a girl.”

“I always love this part.  Seeing parents falling in love with the idea of having a baby all over again.”  Manda gave Jensen a pat on the shoulder.  “You take care of that little girl, you hear?”  She smiled before turning to pack up the ultrasound cart.

“I will.”

“I’ll let Dr. Rayson know everything looks good.  It was nice meeting you Mr. Ackles.  Nice meeting your little girl too.”  With a nod, she pulled open the curtain and wheeled out of the room, leaving Jensen once again with a clear view of his roommate.

Only, this time, Jared wasn’t the only thing he saw when he looked across the room.  News of his daughter’s gender still had him in a ‘happy-place’ and he couldn’t quite figure out what he was looking at.  It took him a minute to realize the middle aged man and woman and younger man must be Jared’s family.  Their actions towards one another showed familiarity and warmth and Jensen had no doubt that Jared had never suffered through the type of family disownment that he had.

“Oh! Jensen!”  Jared’s volume went up as he caught Jensen’s attention.  “This is my family.  My mom, Sherri;  my dad, Gerald Padalecki;  and brother Jeff.”  He gave a head nod as he named each member.  He looked at his parents and then made eye contact with Jensen.  “Guys, this is Jensen.  He is having a baby girl.”

Jensen swallowed hard, take back by Jared forwardness.  “Ohh, so you heard that part.”

Shrugging innocently, “Yeah, you know ‘small room and everything’.”  Jared gave a goofy smile while he received empathetic looks from his parents.

Despite the gender part, Jensen thought it a moot point to tell people he was pregnant; the fact was pretty obvious.  He put his hands on just how obvious it was and rubbed gentle circles against it with his palms.

“It’s nice to meet you Jensen.”  Sherri nodded and Jensen realized where Jared got his smile from.  “And congratulations on having a girl.  I’ve got one of my own.”

The sincerity and kindness in her voice was so strong that Jensen didn’t realize how much he missed those qualities until he was suddenly rewarded with them.  It set off a chain reaction in his heart and spread warmth outward.  “Jared told me.  He also told me what he did for her and, if you don’t mind me saying, you have yourself a pretty amazing son.”  Jensen smiled.

“Why, thank you Jensen.  I happen to agree with you.”  From her seat in the chair beside Jared’s bed, she leaned towards her son and gave him the type of big kiss only a mother could give.  Jared scrunched up his face in embarrassment but took the affection without complaint.  “He _is_ pretty amazing.”

“See, I told you he was her favorite.”  Jeff gave his father an elbow in the ribs and rolled his eyes playfully.

Jared laughed as his mother hugged him all the more.  “You give up a kidney, and then we’ll talk.”  He gave Jensen a smile.  "I'm not all that amazing.  I didn't really _do_ anything, I just gave up something.  Now, making a baby, _that_ is pretty amazing."  He winked at Jensen before curling his lip at Jeff.

Jensen blushed at the compliment that he was sure Jared deliberately threw at him.  He continued to watch the family banter, almost feeling like an intruder in their moment.  The room was so full of warmth and laughter, not to mention flowers, balloons, and  other gifts, that Jensen felt out of place.

But then they dragged him into their conversation once again, Jared’s family proving to be just as forward and nosey as Jared had been upon first meeting Jensen.

And instead of being closed off and defensive, Jensen let them draw him in.  Let himself laugh.  Because, his baby – _daughter_ – was okay, and he was okay, and the Padaleckis reminded him that sometimes there is genuine goodness and love in the world.

Jared’s side of the room was overflowing with all things _good_ but some of that started to creep into the emptiness on Jensen’s side. 

Despite being told he wasn’t going anywhere until after Thanksgiving, Jensen realized he was starting to feel some semblance of happiness.  He still felt alone but spending the night becoming friends with strangers was mending that problem.

And when he woke up the next morning, he found his side of the room not quite as empty as it was before he passed out for the night.

When his eyes adjusted to the morning light he came face to face with a “Get Well” teddy bear from the Padaleckis and a huge smile on Jared’s face.


	2. Chapter 2

Waking up to a stuffed teddy bear was something Jensen didn’t think, as a grown man, he would delight in so much.  But _it_ really was more than a stuffed bear.  The gesture from the Padaleckis came with a vague feeling of friendship and concern that had been lacking in his world.  He pushed up in the bed and grabbed the bear, tossing it back and forth between both hands.  It was soft and plush and would be a perfect addition to his daughter’s nursery, a reminder of how thankful he was to have her.  The card attached to the bear’s paw fluttered to his lap and he flipped it over in his hands to read the message it contained again.

He didn’t say anything to Jared, he was sure his smile gave his thoughts away.  His roommate was already awake and reading, Jared’s eyes and grin flashing at him when he noticed Jensen was awake and invested in appreciating the gift.

“Morning.”  Jensen smiled and turned the bear towards Jared.  “Thanks for the bear.”

“You’re welcome.  My family thought your side of the room was looking a little sparse.”

“Well, thank them for me.”

Jared nodded and put his book to the side.  “I will.  But you can thank them yourself.  They will be in later.”

Jensen wasn’t surprised.  In the one day he had been Jared’s hospital roommate, he had bore witness to Jared’s family coming and going, as well as a scattering of friends, all of whom Jensen was introduced to in the same manner that Jared introduced him to his parents.  He couldn’t remember ever seeing such a parade of people in the span of 24 hours.  “You have a lot of people, hmm?  I mean, like visitors and family?”

Shrugging, Jared nodded his head.  “Yeah, I guess you could say that.  I mean, sometimes I wish they would leave me alone, _they are exhausting_ , but they mean well and I am happy to see them regardless.”  Jared shifted and rubbed at the back of his neck.  “You have anyone coming to visit?  It’s been a little quiet on that side of the room.”

“Umm…no..uhh…”  Jensen’s eyes made a nervous dart to the corners of the room and he scratched at the stubble on his chin.  He thought about Evelyn, knew she couldn’t make the 4 hour trip down to see him during this holiday week, and realized that there probably would never be any visitors on his side of the room.

“Did I just put my foot in my mouth again?”  Jared frowned and smacked his forehead with the heel of his hand, an action Jensen was getting quite accustomed to.

“Oh no, no, it is okay.”  Jensen gave a weak smile.  “I’m used to this.”  He tried to smile but Jared was giving him a sad pitiful look and it made it hard for his lips to curl up.  “No really, it is fine.  Besides, I apparently have your family to keep me company, and that isn’t all that bad.”

Jared didn’t say anything but Jensen could tell from the way he perked up and his eyes narrowed in a smile that he liked the compliment.  “They don’t think you are all that bad either.”

Jensen chuckled in spite of himself.  “That’s good.  Because I don’t think the doctors are letting me go anywhere anytime soon.”  His voice went monotone, “Not that I really have anywhere to go.  I just moved here and don’t really have any acquaintances or friends.  I barely even know the people I work with.  I guess that explains my empty side of the room a bit more.  I only have my friend Evelyn, but she is 200 miles away.  I know she would try to come visit if she could, but with the holidays and all,” he shrugged, as if the gesture completed his thought.  “Yeah.”

“Is that who you were talking to on the phone the other night?”

Jensen tried to look shocked or offended but failed miserably and laughed.  “You don’t miss much, do you?”

“Nope…you know- small room,” he gestured to himself, “board patient.”

“Yeah, that is who I was talking to last night.  She’s my onl- my best friend.  She’d probably hate you.”  Jensen laughed. “Evelyn talks more than anyone I ever met….then I met you.”  Putting up his palms in jest, Jensen smiled.  “I don’t mean that as an offence.  Just an observation.”

Jared looked confused for a moment and then laughed.  “Well, I would hope that your best friend wouldn’t _hate_ me.  I don’t think anyone likes when a person hates them and I am no exception.  I hope her dislike wouldn’t be for anything more than my gift of gab.  But I’m not offended.  I am the one that eavesdropped on you, remember?”

“Fair enough.” 

Jensen wasn’t prone to speaking loudly, having learned long ago that if you speak at a lower volume people will listen to you because they want to, not because they _have_ to, but he had no problem projecting his voice to carry on a conversation across the room with Jared.  In the early morning hours, it was just the two of them, with very little interruptions from medical staff.

He found out that Jared was an English teacher who had taken medical leave when his sister needed a kidney “now” rather than “in the near future.”  He had over a hundred students that he seemed to adore, and the all the handmade cards sprinkling the room proved that the feeling was probably mutual.

Jared, as it turned out, loved his job.  The more he spoke about it, the more ashamed Jensen was to reveal his job as a very unglamorous DNA sequencer. 

Only, when he did reveal that fact, Jared was so blown away by the fact that Jensen had to laugh.  His job wasn’t all that exciting, it was just logging information and coding, but the imaginative fictional escapades that Jared came up with were.  Jared teasing Jensen about cloning humans on his lunch break had both men laughing uncontrollably.  And when Jensen said that, due to his pregnancy, he would probably have to quit in a few weeks, Jared made him laugh again when he ‘solved’ the problem by suggesting Jensen just clone himself to carry on working.

Jensen realized he hadn’t laughed like that, laughed at something totally ridiculous and silly, in months, maybe even a year.  It felt good.

He realized Jared liked to talk, but Jensen discovered he _really_ liked to listen.

Jared was like an angel sent from _somewhere_ to remind him that his life wasn’t shit.

Out of nowhere, mid-explanation of how he came to live in Austin, Jensen let out a lungful of surprised air and his eyes went wide.  His hands flew to his middle and he let out another gasp.

“Jensen?”  Jared was blinking at him in confusion.

“I’m okay.”  His voice was excited yet reassuring.

“She kicking?”

Jensen nodded, never so happy to have someone pummel his insides.  The baby hadn’t moved like this since before the accident and he had been waiting for this to happen for hours, almost days.  “Mmm hmm, and punching.”

Pushing up in the bed and leaning towards Jensen’s side of the room, “What does it feel like?”

“Normally, it kinda hurts.  But right now, it is the best damn feeling in the world.”  Jensen smiled wide and rubbed the swell lovingly.  He felt another kick and shift as the baby rubbed up against his insides.  “It’s kind of like a thump from the inside.  It surprised me at first, but then she got stronger and I felt her more.  I like it when she moves, it kinda gives me an idea of what she is doing, what position she is in.  It is a little uncomfortable, but she doesn’t mean it.”  As if on cue, the baby gave a hard kick.  “Umph!”

“Is she always this active?”

“She started getting  this active right before my accident but since then she hasn’t really moved much.”  Jensen’s words hitched on the warning of a sob.

Jared’s eyes softened and he spoke just above a whisper.  “Hey, she’s okay now, right?”

“Yeah.  I think.  I hope.”  Jensen ran a hand under the curve of his belly and smiled down at it.  “Baby girl, you have no idea how glad I am to feel those kicks.  I just…” he turned his attention to Jared “…if you could feel this, you would understand.”

Jared smiled softly.  “I wish I could…feel her kick, I mean.”

“Yeah.”  Jensen snorted.  “If you weren’t all laid up in that bed, I would let you.”

“You would?”

Jensen picked up on the disbelief in Jared’s voice.  He guessed he understood it, considering how tentative he had been in letting Jared into his head, where Jared had been immediately forthcoming.  The truth was, other than Evelyn, he rarely let anyone touch his belly.  It was a much too personal gesture to give to just anyone.  Yet, it was nice to have someone such as Jared interested in and invested in this moment of his baby’s life.  “Of course I would – umph!”  Jensen laughed and rubbed the area where the baby landed a kick.  “See, she agrees.”

“Well,” a glint of mischief appeared in Jared’s eyes.  “You certainly shouldn’t get out of bed, but the nurses recommended that I start taking short walks so I can get back on my feet sooner.”

“They did?  I didn’t hear that.”

“You didn’t?”  Jared looked surprised.  “I guess you must have been asleep.”

Jensen scrunched his face up in thought.  “Really?”

“Yeah.  So-so can I?”  Jared put an excited puppy dog face on, practically complete with wagging tail.  “Can I feel her?”

Jensen nodded an affirmative before putting up a warning hand.  “Just, be careful!”

“Will do!”  Jared shifted, winced, and then hissed as he swung his legs out of bed at a snail’s pace.  It was slow going, but he eventually made his way towards Jensen and took a pained seat in the chair that, until now, had remained empty.  If he was in discomfort, Jared hid it with a goofy grin.  “Hey.”

“H-hey.”  Jensen swallowed.  He and Jared had never been so physically close before and it struck him harder than he could have realized.  Up close, he realized Jared’s brown eyes were more than just one solid color.   And he had dimples when he smirked.  Frozen in the moment, Jensen blinked dumbly as he focused on Jared’s hands.

The man’s fingers were long, _really long_ , and they twitched with nervous energy that held the promise of just how skilled they were.  Immediately, feeling ridiculous for letting his brain think such thoughts, Jensen blushed, earning him a confused stare from Jared.

In a brisk change of thought, Jensen swallowed, bit at the corner of his lip and gave Jared a small smile.  “Here.”  Jensen gently placed both of his roommate’s hands on his middle near where he felt the last movement.

Jared looked up at Jensen thought eyelashes and long strands of hair.  Jensen could have sworn that there was the faintest flush across his cheeks, but the incandescent bulbs weren’t helping him in deducing if he was right.  Besides, he figured it was probably because of the effort the man put into walking across the room.

“There.  Did you feel that?”

“No.”  Frowning, Jared went to pull back.  Jensen kept him in place.

“It was a small movement; she can do better than that, right baby girl? Wait a second.”

Jensen covered the tops of Jared’s hands with his own palms, effectively moving their hands together and ghosting them over the curve.  He pressed in harder, hoping for movement so he could return the smile to Jared’s face.

“Maybe she is shy.”

“She’s not.”  Jensen smiled.

“Hey, Jensen, it’s okay…”  The baby kicked out, landing a flurry of movement against Jared’s palm.  “Holy shi-“  Jared almost instinctively flinched away when he felt the movement but Jensen held his hand in place and guided it to follow his daughter’s shift.  “Dude!  That is insane!”

“Well, I don’t know about ‘insane’ but it is pretty amazing.”  Jensen laughed as Jared became more brazen and explored the expanse of his middle with his hands in search of more movement.

“It’s so weird!”  Jared’s eyes were alive with energy and he flashed them between Jensen’s face and the swell under his palms.  The baby kicked again, this time Jensen wincing as she rolled uncomfortably along his ribs.  “Whoa!  It’s like you have an alien in there.  Like a warm and fuzzy version of the movie _Alien_.”

Jensen scrunched up his face in distaste at the analogy.  “She’s not an alien.”

“Aww, Jensen, I know.  It’s just….It’s just really cool.”  Jared got closer to the swell, leaning down to hover over it before he realized how much he had just invaded the man’s personal space and he shot upright.  He winced from the movement and threw Jensen an apologetic smile.  “Sorry…I guess I just got carried away.

Jensen, shocked by Jared’s complete interest, was momentarily speechless.  He felt to absence of the warmth from Jared’s hands and the baby punched out in seeming response.  “No, it’s okay.  It is ‘really cool.’  And she,”  He picked Jared’s hands back up and put them on his belly.  “I know this sounds weird, but…I think she likes it.”

“Yeah?”  Jared gave a small smile.

“Yeah.”

Jared’s fingers twitched before curving to match the roundness of Jensen’s stomach.  “I don’t want to cross any boundaries, you know?  Make you uncomfortable.”

“You won’t.”  Jensen smiled and relaxed into the inclined bed as he watched Jared delight in the weaker movements his daughter was making.

“Mr. Padalecki!”

Both men swung their heads towards a very unhappy nurse staring them down.

“Uhh ohh…”  Jared suddenly looked like a kid with his hand caught in the cookie jar, a very round, swollen cookie jar.

Walking with a purpose, the nurse squared her stance and tapped her foot when she got closer to the two men.  “What, exactly, do you think you are doing?”

Jared sheepishly scratched at the back of his head and gave his most charming smile.  “Umm, I just thought I would stretch my legs a little bit.”

“You were under strict orders not to get out of bed on your own!”

“You what?”  Jensen shot Jared a confused glare.  “Jared?”

Jared turned his attention to Jensen and gave a culpable grin.  “Umm…So I may have lied a _teensy_ bit.”

Somehow, Jensen wasn’t surprised.  He rolled his eyes to emphasize the fact.

“Let’s go mister.  You’ve got to get back into bed.”  The nurse helped Jared up and made a return trip to his bed.  “And you better stay here unless someone is helping you, is that clear?”

“I feel fine.  Sore and stuff, but it was okay.”  Jared turned on more charm and melted away some of the nurses frigid attitude.  However, the woman still gave him a warning glare.  “But it won’t happen again.  Promise!”

Jared had on that devious grin again; the nurse couldn’t see it, but Jensen could.   The pregnant man had a feeling Jared would be harmlessly breaking that promise, he also had a feeling Jared had a knack for worming his way into people’s lives so that he was able to get away with his rule breaking.

Jensen was on board with that, because Jared had been there with him to help appreciate that his daughter was still, literally, alive and kicking.  It was the first time he shared a moment like that with _anybody_.  And if it meant more promise-breaking to have another moment like that, he figured Jared had already wormed his way into his life and could have a free pass.

He thought the realization should have been more unsettling, but it wasn’t.  Instead, it was kind of nice, exciting even.

Maybe Evelyn wasn’t his only friend after all.

*******

Jensen was set to be released the next day, one day before Thanksgiving.

Fate, however, had other plans for him.

The morning started off like the two prior, Jared’s family visiting for a while before they spent some time with Megan, Jared’s sister.

Jensen woke up feeling stiffer than yesterday, which he told his doctor; they made note of it but reassured him that is was residual soreness from the accident.

Still, it hurt.  It hurt more than when he first landed his sorry self in the hospital in the first place.

Jared must have picked up on it as well because when he let out a pained gasp, Jared was staring at him like a hawk.

“You okay, Jensen?”

“I…yeah…I think so…”  Jensen tried to flash a smile but it came across as pained with gritted teeth.

“How’s your little alien?”

“Doing okay.  Not moving too much right now.”  Jensen ran a hand over his middle and sighed.  “I think we are both tired of being in this bed.”

“Can’t say I blame you.  The feeling is mutual.”  Jared narrowed his eyes at the man across the room.  “You sure you’re okay?  Should you maybe…call someone?”

“No, I…”  Jensen gasped and pitched forward, cupping both hands over his stomach.  His eyes widened in pain as a strong cramp shot through his body, knocking the breath straight out of him.  “Uhhn!”  He squeezed his eyes shut and groaned.

“Jensen!”  Jared flipped the sheet off his lap and swung his legs over the bed faster than he should have.  He winced but pushed past the discomfort as he made his way, a little quicker than the first time, across the room.  “Hey, Jensen?  Tell me what’s going on?” Jared hovered beside Jensen and put a hand on his shoulder.

Jensen shot his eyes open and gave Jared a deer in headlights stare before crumpling as pain tore through him again.  “Don’t know.  I think maybe,” he gave Jared an unsure glance, “I’m in labor again.”

“Shit, Jensen.”  Jared hit the call button beside Jensen’s bed but as he went to pull his hand back, Jensen grabbed onto it and lurched forward with a moan.  “Hey, it’s going to be okay Jensen, don’t worry.  They are going to take care of your little alien.”

Giving Jared’s hand one final squeeze as the pain ebbed, Jensen realized what he had just done and pulled his hand away.  “Jared…I’m…I’m sorry.  I…”

“Shh, don’t worry about it Jensen.  It’s fine.  It’s why I am over on this side of the room.”  Jared retook Jensen’s hand in his own.  “It’s okay.”

“I don’t even know you…and this isn’t your problem…”  Jensen’s words cut off as he gasped when his muscles contracted and clenched tightly.  “Ahh!”  He looked up at Jared with grateful yet apologetic eyes and squeezed his hand through the discomfort.  Worry overshadowed any embarrassment or awkwardness he felt in the moment.

“It’s okay.”  Impatiently, Jared hit the call button in a series of quick rapid presses.  “And you’re right, it’s not my problem because _this_ ,” he made an eye gesture to encompass the bed, “is _not_ a problem.  Okay?”

Tentatively, Jensen shook his head in acknowledgement.  “Okay.”

Almost as soon as Jensen seemed to regain focus, an alarm went off from the fetal heart monitor, shocking both men and sending the nurse who was about to enter the room into overdrive.

The nurse barked out an order and yelled for a doctor before she came to assess the situation.  She raised a confused eyebrow at Jared, but the look on the man’s face dared her to ask him to move.

Jensen’s world went spinning for a moment.  There was a flurry of activity and he caught the words “distress” and “elevated heart rate” and little else.

Suddenly, Dr. Rayson was in his line of vision, trying to explain the situation.  It didn’t make much sense because with the panic induced shot of adrenaline running through Jensen’s system, things were feeling a little black around the edges and he was dizzy.

“Jensen, your body’s gone into premature labor again.  The baby’s feeling a lot of the stress and her heart rate is erratic.  We’re going to try to stop it, which we think has a good chance of happening since it worked last time.  But if we can’t, we’re going to have to do an emergency delivery.”

Jensen blinked and nodded, letting the doctors do whatever they needed to do.  He choked on a breath when the pain picked up again and he looked frantically towards Jared.  “Jared, please?  Please don’t leave.  Please?”

“I’m not.  I’m not going anywhere.”  Jared got a better grip on Jensen’s hand and covered it with both of his own.                 

“Jared…” The utterance from a nurse was almost a warning as she narrowed her eyes at her patient.

Sitting firmly in the chair beside Jensen and never letting go of his hand, his eyes went serious.  “I’m _not_ going anywhere.”

**********

True to his word, Jared didn’t go anywhere.

He stayed there during the medicals staff’s attempts, and ultimate success, in stopping Jensen’s labor.

And he remained there, surely uncomfortable by now, sitting by Jensen’s bed and talking nonsense stories to keep the anxiety levels in the room down.

He was still there when the Padaleckis came to visit.

They gave one glance to Jared sitting in the chair beside Jensen rather than being in his bed, all smirked curiously, and never said another word about it.  Instead, they all huddled around Jensen’s side of the room and invaded his privacy.

Although, Jensen thought maybe the term ‘invaded’ was a little harsh since they were very much welcomed.

Jared had a way of making Jensen not feel awkward about the situation.

He also found of way of telling the day’s events in a way that made Jensen out to be a trooper, his daughter’s hero, rather than Jared getting the heroic credit he deserved.  Jared had been the one who kept Jensen calm and focused, but to hear Jared tell his parents about the labor scare, one would think Jensen had it together the whole time.

Jensen realized that maybe Jared thought the pregnant man was a lot more amazing that Jensen thought he was himself.

It was nice to feel that type of importance.  It was feel like the fact that he went into preterm labor wasn’t because he was a terrible father already.  It was nice to see it as the fact that he was a good father because his body was able to stop laboring, thus proving its ability to keep his baby safe.

Most of all, it was nice to realize that there were two sides to every story and he really had to start remembering that.

Jared looked down at Jensen, pulling him out of his thoughts.  He curved his palm to Jensen’s belly and moved it in a familiar pattern.  “She moving?”

“Not much yet.  It kind of worries me, but I know she’s okay.”  Jensen pointed with a thumb to the fetal heartbeat monitor that had been dutifully returned to reporting a healthy heartbeat.

Jared smirked and talked down to Jensen’s middle.  “Hey, alien.”  He traced his pointer finger over the swell and held it so he looked like he was pointing at it.  His voice went funny, “E.T. phone home.”

“Huh?”

“She’s a little alien.  I figured she could let you know everything is going okay in there.”

“She’s _not_ an alien.”  Jensen screwed his face up in mock annoyance that gave way to confusion.  “E.T.?”

“Yeah, E.T., you know, the little wrinkly alien from the Spielberg movie?”  Jared did his best E.T. impression before breaking into a laugh.

“I never really saw that movie.”  Jensen shook his head in confusion.  “Didn’t have much time for movies as a kid.”

“Are you serious?  You’ve never seen _E.T._?”

“Nope.”

“It’s a classic.  It’s…it’s like childhood.  I mean, it is about this alien and this kid, Eliot, had to help him get back to his home planet.  I mean…I can’t believe you’ve never seen it.  I think you’d like it, everyone likes it…I guess you might have to have seen it as a kid to feel the way about it that I do…but, I have it, if you want to watch it.  You know, when you get out of here.”  Jared looked flustered at his own rambling, then back peddled slightly to the invitation.  “I mean, you don’t have to if you don’t want to.  But if you want to see it, I have it.  You can come by my place.”

“And watch _E.T._?”  Jensen raised both eyebrows.  He hadn’t done anything socially since Peter, and even though it was just an invitation to watch a movie, a children’s movie no less, it was still a surprise.

“Yeah, if you want.  You can bring your own alien.”  Jared laughed lamely at his own joke.  “But, like I said, you don’t have it.”

Jensen scratched at the back of his neck, lips curving into a hesitant smile.  “No, I’d like that.  I can’t promise I’ll like the movie, but I’ll give it a shot.”  He rubbed over his baby bump and shrugged.  “And I kind of _have_ to bring my own alien.  We are sort of a two for one deal right now.”

“Well, as long as she behaves herself, I guess she can come.”  Jared laughed.

“She’ll be good.  She promises.”  Jensen smiled fully, flashing a grin that Jared had never seen before.

“Hey, Jensen?”

“Yeah, Jared?”

“You want to have Thanksgiving dinner with me and my family tomorrow?”

Jensen flat out laughed.  The reaction went on longer than he anticipated, but he couldn’t help himself.  Jared was looking at him so earnestly, but the question was funny.  His doctors had told him he wasn’t going anywhere for at least a week, that they thought the car accident may have put more stress on his body than they originally believed.  He had no choice _but_ to have Thanksgiving dinner in the room with Jared.   But Jared was still looking at him in complete seriousness so Jensen tried to compose himself.  “Of course I would.  I have a feeling you wouldn’t let me eat alone even if I wanted to.  Which I don’t, I am just saying.”

“Good.  I hear we are having turkey.”  Jared smiled to match Jensen’s.

And it was funny, because it took a car accident and two labor scares to give Jensen a traditional Thanksgiving dinner.

Sure he was in a hospital bed, but he was still eating turkey, carrots, corn, mashed potatoes and something he was sure the hospital cafeteria was trying to pass off as a biscuit.

The nurses had given up on their quest to keep Jared in his bed and more often than not, he was seated beside Jensen, as he was now, while they enjoyed their dinner with his the Padaleckis strewn about.

He ended up surrounded by friendly voices and people who gave a shit about him when he spoke.

And for that realization he was thankful.

He was also thankful for whatever forces had given him Jared as a roommate, and most likely a future friend.

And when the Padaleckis felt like fawning over his baby bump, he let them, because he was thankful his little girl had people who, even if it was only for the moment, cared about her. 

There was also the promise of something more, more than just simple movie plans, building with Jared.  And he thought maybe that, besides his daughter’s health, is what he was thankful for most of all.


End file.
